A historic institution shaping Europe’s future through research and learning
The University of Vienna, ranking among the top 100, is a place of interaction, critical
thinking and ideas that change our society. Since 1365 it has been home to people
who learn, teach and research, who are full of drive and genuinely curious – about
each other, the world and what lies ahead. Looking towards the big questions of our
time, we combine academic rigour with societal responsibility.
Whether through a bachelor's programme, master's programme, teacher education
programme, continuing education or a career in research – we offer space for
personal, professional and academic development. In the heart of one of the most
liveable cities in the world, tradition and innovation are fused with each other at a
place of learning, teaching, thinking and shaping.
The University of Vienna and Circle U.
The University of Vienna has been an active and committed member of Circle U.
since 2022. Through its broad academic expertise and international networks, it helps
bring Circle U.’s vision of a university without borders to life—connecting education,
research, and societal engagement across Europe. Vienna hosts the Circle U. Early-
Career Researchers Platform (CU.ecr), a space dedicated for experts supporting
early-career researchers. It brings together professionals in higher education and
career development from across our nine universities, creating a European
community that offers mentoring, mobility, and collaborative opportunities to
strengthen career paths.
Beyond this focus area, the University of Vienna actively contributes to joint
educational opportunities, such as summer and winter schools, entrepreneurship
courses and other collaborative teaching initiatives. It also actively promotes student
and staff mobility across partner universities.
By integrating Circle U. into its strategic priorities – internationalisation,
interdisciplinarity, and societal impact – the University of Vienna strengthens both the
alliance and its own mission: to combine academic excellence with global
collaboration and to empower future generations to create knowledge for a
sustainable and democratic Europe.
Events
Circle U. for Early Career Researchers: Funding, Mobility and more
Circle U. Student Info Session & Welcome Day
Open Conversation: How Can We Act Sustainably in Everyday Life?
Join the Future – Circle U. Doctoral Collaboration Networks
Meet the Circle U. team at the University of Vienna
Do you have questions about Circle U.? Get in touch with our local Circle U.
coordinators Viki Menczel and Borbala Darabos at circle-u@univie.ac.at
Management Board member
Manuela Baccarini
- Vice-Rector, Research and International Affairs
- Board member
Manuela Baccarini
- Vice-Rector, Research and International Affairs
- Board member
Profile page and contact details
Academic Chairs
Prof. Dr. Mark Coeckelbergh
- Knowledge Hub on Artificial Intelligence
- Academic Chair
Prof. Dr. Mark Coeckelbergh
- Knowledge Hub on Artificial Intelligence
- Academic Chair
Prof. Dr. Mark Coeckelbergh is a full Professor of Philosophy of Media and Technology at the Philosophy of Department of the University of Vienna, and until recently Vice Dean of the Faculty of Philosophy and Education. He is also ERA Chair at the Institute of Philosophy of the Czech Academy of Sciences in Prague and Guest Professor at WASP-HS and University of Uppsala. Previously he was the President of the Society for Philosophy and Technology (SPT).
His expertise focuses on ethics and technology, in particular robotics and artificial intelligence. He is a member of various entities that support policy building in the area of robotics and artificial intelligence, such as the European Commission’s High Level Expert Group on Artificial Intelligence, the Expert Council Ethics of AI of the Austrian UNESCO Commission, the Austrian Council on Robotics and Artificial Intelligence, and the Austrian Advisory Council on Automated Mobility.
He is University of Vienna’s Circle U. Academic Chair for Artificial Intelligence. He is on the advisory board of the University of Milan’s Research Center on the Philosophy of Technology (PhilTech@UNIMI) and is also on the editorial board of the journal Cambridge Forum on AI: Law and Governance. He is the author of 17 philosophy books and numerous articles, and is involved in several national and European research projects on AI and robotics.
Profile page and contact details
Professor of Philosophy at University of Vienna
Prof. Dr. Ute Smit
- CU.mil
- Academic Chair
Prof. Dr. Ute Smit
- CU.mil
- Academic Chair
Being an applied linguist in an English department, my research focuses mainly on English in, and around, education at the crossroads of classroom discourse, language policy, internationalisation, English as a lingua franca, disciplinary biliteracy and multilingualism. I’ve been involved in various international projects, and I’m presently the chair of the ICLHE (Integrating content and Language in Education) Association and the vice head of the international research platform #YouthMediaLife.
Profile page and contact details
Professor of English Linguistics
Faculty of Philological and Cultural Studies
University of Vienna
Prof. Kerstin Krellenberg
- Knowledge Hub on Climate
- Academic Chair
Prof. Kerstin Krellenberg
- Knowledge Hub on Climate
- Academic Chair
My research focus is on cities, with a special interest in urban sustainability transformations, urban vulnerability and urban adaptation. Global environmental change and digital change as well as the impacts on, and the challenges and opportunities for cities, are central to my work. I work both conceptually and empirically to better link theory and practice for sustainable urban transformation. My aim is to develop integrative approaches through inter- and transdisciplinary cooperation. This includes for example the interaction of the UN Sustainability Development Goals (SDGs) or the socio-ecological-technical interactions in cities. I studied environmental sciences and received my PhD from Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin and did my habilitation at the University of Leipzig, both in geography. My regional geographic focus is in Latin America.
At University of Vienna I am among others acting as Climate Chair for Circle U. and member of the Environment and Climate Research Hub (univie.ac.at).
Profile page and contact details
Department of Geography and Regional Research
University of Vienna
Dr. Sonja Buchberger
- CU.til
- Academic Chair
Dr. Sonja Buchberger
- CU.til
- Academic Chair
Sonja Buchberger has been team lead of faculty development at the University of Vienna since 2021. In May 2024, she was appointed academic chair of the Teaching Innovation Lab in the European University Alliance Circle U. National and international teaching assignments (UK, Switzerland, Germany). In 2013, she was awarded her doctoral degree in Social Anthropology from the School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS), University of London. Prior to that, she studied Arabic Studies, Islamic Studies and Development Studies at the University of Vienna.
Areas of responsibility at the CTL: Team lead, development of programmes supporting faculty to develop and professionalise their teaching, editorial board member and author in the Infopool better teaching (univie.ac.at), responsibility for the UNIVIE Teaching Awards, workshops and consultations in different areas (Scholarship of Teaching and Learning, teaching and career development, teaching portfolio & teaching statement, teaching with discussions, teaching academic reading, diversity and inclusion, feedback, teaching in the science lab).
Prior to that, from 2014 onwards, she was director of various programs (Basic qualification for staff new to teaching, coaching, workshop series, on demand, tailor-made offers (in German), certificate program Teaching Competence Plus) and developed a MOOC (massive open online course) on inclusive teaching in higher education (in German).
Profile page and contact details
Center for Teaching and Learning
University of Vienna
Univ.-Prof. Dr. Jürgen König
- Knowledge Hub on Global Health
- Academic Chair
Univ.-Prof. Dr. Jürgen König
- Knowledge Hub on Global Health
- Academic Chair
Specialized Human Nutrition – We are interested in the mechanisms of hunger and satiety regulation, combining psychological (stress, food craving, restricted eating, visual and sensory food clues) and physiological aspects. Moreover, we evaluate the nutrition behaviour within the Austrian population with respect to safety issues and supply with nutrients.
Publications:
Contact details
Department of Nutritional Sciences
University of Vienna
Dr. Marco Masia
- InCU.bator
- Academic Chair
Dr. Marco Masia
- InCU.bator
- Academic Chair
Expert of Academic Entrepreneurship, Marco Masia oversees the spin-off support and the entrepreneurial education programmes at the University of Vienna. He is also member of the investment advisory board of the Vienna technology incubator (INiTS) and serves as Academic Chair for innovation at the European University Initiative alliance Circle-U. For more than a decade, Marco has covered different roles at the intersection between research, innovation, and policy: executive coordinator of the Initiative for Science in Europe, founder and managing director of a consultancy company (MARMAS GmbH), assistant professor of theoretical chemistry at the University of Sassari. He holds a PhD in Physics (Polytechnic University of Catalonia, Spain), a MSc in Chemistry (University of Sassari, Italy) and an executive MBA (Frankfurt School for Finance & Management, Germany).
Profile page and contact details
Head of Entrepreneurship
Research services
University of Vienna
